A process is known from patent IT 942.878 for sewing pantyhose articles which comprises putting two stockings on two corresponding flat, paired, juxtaposed shapes; moving the shapes close to each other with the stockings fitted thereon; longituinally cutting a portion of the two stockings thus kept close to each other; spreading apart the two shapes with the two stockings thus cut; sewing the two edges thus wide-opened between them; rejoining the shapes with the stockings thus sewn and making up the pantyhose article; unloading the thus obtained pantyhose. More in particular, according to the known method, there is provided to perform the sewing of the two stockings by means of only one sewing machine so that the time for making the pantyhose article is strictly dependent on the sewing time, the latter being the longest of the whole cycle.
Attempts have been made to reduce the time required for making pantyhose articles. These attempts have concentrated on increasing the working speed of the sewing machine. However a limit has presently reached and cannot be much further reduced by mechanical means.
Other improvements have been made concerning the automatic positioning of the two stockings onto the relevant shapes prior to their sewing, but not even these improvements have achieved the object of markedly reducing the pantyhose-making time.